


This Isn't On You

by thorxbruce



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Heavy Angst, Hurt No Comfort, I cried while writing this, Irondad, Major Endgame Spoilers, This Is Sad, im sorry, oof, see u in a minute I guess !, spiderson
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-21
Updated: 2019-05-21
Packaged: 2020-03-09 04:33:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18909646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thorxbruce/pseuds/thorxbruce
Summary: What if Peter had survived the snap? And what if he and Tony went to Vormir to retrieve the soul stone.





	This Isn't On You

Steve had just finished his little warmup pep-speech to everyone standing on the quantum tunnel. 

“Remember you don’t need to rush and be sloppy. Take your time.” Tony said, making sure to look everyone in the eyes to see that they understood him. 

“We ready?” Steve asked. 

“Let’s go,” Rhodey said with a big smile. 

Peter hovered his hand over the GPS. “See you in a minute,” he smiled at everyone and of course, everyone smiled back at him. 

“Going in 5,” the team got their masks on, “4,” Bruce pressed a few more buttons and then joined everyone on the tunnel, “3, 2, go!” 

And then they were going. 

Tony, Peter, Rhodey, and Nebula had been tasked with 2014 - power and soul stones. It seemed like an easy enough job, just for Rhodey and Nebula to follow Quill to the stone, while Peter and Tony took the Benatar to Vormir to get the stone. 

As Nebula lowered a pod down to the surface of Morag, Tony and Peter stood to the side. Tony was about to kick some rat-looking thing, but Peter shot a web out at his ankle. 

“Not nice!” 

Tony rolled his eyes, “Party pooper.” He turned to where Rhodey was guiding the pod. “Can you guys hurry it up?” 

Rhodey shot Tony a look, “Hey Blue, can you go a little slower?” Tony made an offended noise, which made his best friend turn around to laugh at him. 

Just a couple minutes later, Tony and Peter were boarding the Benatar to go to Vormir. 

“Be safe,” Rhodey said, pulling Tony and then Peter in for a hug. “Watch each other’s six, alright?” 

“Yes sir, Mr. Rhodes!” Peter said with a big smile. He rushed over to Nebula and gave her a quick hug as well, wishing her well. 

What seemed like seconds after Tony and Peter began their flight, they were already approaching a shockingly purple planet. They landed on a rock, but the rock was right next to about a foot and a half of water. 

“Well,” Tony said, glaring up at the giant rock formation that probably encased the soul stone. “Might as well go up there.” 

Peter took in a shaky breath. “Yeah might as well.” 

Tony activated his suit and flew up a few feet, motioning for Peter to web himself to his boot so they could just fly the majority of the way up. Tony flew them about fifty feet from the top before gently setting Peter down on a ledge, dropping himself down after Peter gave him a thumbs up. 

“Got any movie references to compare this one to?” Tony asked with a little smirk. They began to walk the rest of the way up the mountain. 

Peter shook his head as he took in his surroundings. “I’m coming up blank…” 

Tony shrugged and wound his arm around the younger’s shoulders. “I’m sure you’ll think of something.” 

As the two finished their trek, Tony thought back to how much Peter had grown in the five years since the snap. While learning to be an adult and a big brother to Morgan, as well as learning how to move on from losing May in the snap. He also helped organize relief foundations in Queens (and really anywhere in New York that he was needed), help keep track of the Avengers, and continue to monitor Queens. Tony was just…insanely proud. 

When they got to the top, Peter gasped, “Oh my god it’s a dementor,” while shaking Tony’s arm to get his attention on the thing. 

“Welcome, Anthony, son of Maria; Peter, son of Richard.” The dementor thing said. 

Tony tilted his head, “You know us?” 

The dementor thing glided a bit closer. “It is my curse to know all who journey here.” 

“We’re just here to uh get the stone,” Peter said. Tony pushed the young hero slightly behind him as the thing came even closer. 

“The stone requires a price.” 

“We’re ready to pay,” Tony said, beginning to feel a little like he was definitely not ready to pay. 

The dementor came into the light and Tony recognized him as the Red Skull - yeah, that one. “We all think that at first. We are all wrong.” 

Peter felt a slight chill go down his spine and the telltale sign of his spidey senses beginning to go off. “Can you take us to the stone please?” His voice felt smaller than normal, probably due to the fact that he was genuinely afraid. But only a little. 

As the Vormir resident led them to a cliffside, Tony began asking questions. “So, you tried to take the space stone way back in the day and got sent here? How’s that workin’ out for you?” 

The Red Skull scoffed back at Tony. “As you know, I sought out the stones, but they did not deem me worthy enough. So, as punishment, I was banished me here to lead souls to something I could never have myself.” 

“Seems like a pretty Indiana Jones thing to do. Maybe the series was created by the stones.” Peter went off on a quiet tangent about Indiana Jones and hidden treasures. Normally, Tony would quiet him (especially at a time like this), but he let him keep mumbling. 

Tony let the wind and Peter’s whispering be the only sound on the final few moments of their trek, before the reached the edge of the cliff. 

“Where is it?” He asked. 

The skull sighed. “What you seek lies before you. As does what you fear.” Well if that didn’t set alarm bells off in Tony’s head, he wasn’t sure what would. 

“What do you mean.” Peter asked, with an added so cryptic that only Tony could hear. 

“The price.” Tony whipped his head from the horizon to their guide. “The soul stone has a special place among the stones. You could say it carries a certain…wisdom. The stone demands a sacrifice.” Tony asked what the sacrifice was. “In order to receive the stone, you must lose that which you love. A soul for the soul.” 

Peter laughed out loud, “You’re kidding, right? That’s so…corny. Not even like ‘pass these trials in order to get the stone.’ It doesn’t make sense.” 

The skull began to drift towards and rock formation. “I’ll let you two have your time.” 

Tony turned towards Peter with a sullen look in his eyes. “I don’t think he’s kidding, kid.” 

“It just- It can’t.” 

Tony nodded and set a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “Pete, I think it’s true. Think about it. What Nebula said back on Titan a million years ago. Thanos, he went to Vormir with Gamora, came back without her.” 

That got Peter to be silent. Tony noted that apparently the only way to make the kid be quiet was to tell him life or death consequences. Peter sat down on a rock and started to contemplate what to do. 

Fifteen minutes later, he still hadn’t spoken. 

Tony waved at Red Skull with a fake laugh. “It’ll be just a few more minutes, bud.” The billionaire ran his hand through his hair. “How’d we get this shit.” 

Peter smirked, “Blame America.” He stood up and leveled Tony with a look. “One of us is gonna have to go down there.” 

Tony nodded, “Yeah. Whatever it takes…” The last part was more of a mumble, more of a reassurance to himself. 

“If we don’t do this billions of people stay dead.” 

“Then I guess we both know who it’s gotta be.” Tony gave Peter a weak smile. 

Peter nodded and looked down. “I guess we do.” 

Tony tilted his head, “I don’t think we’re talking about the same person, Pete.” 

Peter grabbed Tony’s arm to make sure he was paying close attention to him. “Tony. You have a family, Morgan and Pepper, they need you…you’re Iron Man. The world needs you. Queens will be alright, I promise.” 

“You’re my family too, kid. I can’t just let you…let you die.” Tony felt tears welling up in his eyes, but he tried to push them away as much as he could. 

“Tony, this is my choice, okay? For five years, all I’ve wanted is to find a way to get everyone back. Now I can. Please, Tony.” Peter turned towards the cliff. “Besides, where else could I get this view?” 

The father and son pair were silent for a moment. Tony pulled Peter to his side for a long hug and a quick kiss on top of his head. “Alright,” he muttered, pulling out of the embrace even though he never wanted to leave it. “I guess you win.” 

Peter nodded, “Thank you.” 

Tony smiled softly and then quickly swept Peter’s legs from underneath him. “Tell my family I love them, okay.” 

Peter looked shocked but flipped them over, “Tell them yourself.” He shot a web down at Tony’s hand to keep him down on the ground before making a beeline for the cliff. 

Tony had his armor form over his hand to shoot a repulsor beam right in front of where Peter was going to knock him back. He quickly sprayed the web solvent on his hand and got up to rush to the edge. Tony made it off of the cliff but quickly felt Peter jumping onto him and shooting a web to the top of the cliff. 

But the web wasn’t attached to his hand, it was attached to Tony’s side. 

“Fri, override Tony’s suit functions. Code Mini-Boss.” 

Tony shook his head, “Pete, don’t.” He made sure Peter’s arm was in a death grip, but the spider-kid was still hanging towards the ground.

“Override activated,” FRIDAY said with a hint of sadness in her voice.

Peter shook his head, “Tony, this isn’t on you, alright? It’s not your fault.” He looked down towards the ground. “But you have to let go.” 

“There has to be another way, Pete, please.” Tony let his tears out now because he knew there would be no way to stop him. “Please,” his voice was barely audible, but he knew Peter would hear him. 

The kid shook his head, “There isn’t. You have to let me go. Dad, let me go. It’s okay. I love you.” Tony kept refusing, so Peter had to take the upper hand. He used his body weight to kick his legs out to the side of the mountain and vaulted himself out of Tony’s grip. 

“No!” Tony yelled as he watched Peter fall the rest of the way down. “Kid, no,” he whispered as Peter collided with the ground. Tony, not bearing the sight, looked back up towards the sky with tears falling down his face. A bright light went up from the two spikes on top of the mountain and next thing Tony knew, he was laying in a pool of water. 

Without Peter. 

Tony shot up and looked around the planet, which was much darker than he remembered it being when he arrived. Made sense, considering the soul stone made him lose the light that he arrived with, himself. 

Tony noticed that his right hand was curled into a ball, and opened it to reveal a bright orange stone. He slammed his hand back into the water and let out a yell. For a few moments, he sat and cried. For Peter, for himself, for Morgan, for May, for Gamora, for everyone. But he knew what had to happen now. 

He had to get everyone back. For Peter.

**Author's Note:**

> im major sad at this fic but follow my Twitter @thorxbruce bc uwu


End file.
